Urgent, compelling reading from the author of Chernobyl on the defining conflict of our times- do you know what is at stake in Ukraine?
On 24 February 2022, Russia shocked the world by launching an invasion of Ukraine. In the midst of checking on loved ones who were now on the front lines of Europe's largest conflict since the Second World War, acclaimed Ukrainian-American historian Serhii Plokhy inevitably found himself attempting to understand the deeper causes of the invasion, analysing its course and contemplating the wider consequences.
The Russo-Ukrainian War is the comprehensive history of a conflict that has burned since 2014, and that, with Russia's attempt to seize Kyiv, exploded a geo-political order that had been cemented since the end of the Cold War. With an eye for the gripping detail on the ground, both in the halls of power and down in the trenches, as well as a keen sense of the grander sweep of history, Plokhy traces the origins and the evolution of the conflict, from the collapse of the Russian empire to the rise and fall of the USSR, and on to the development in Ukraine of a democratic politics soon loathed by its neighbour in the east.
Plokhy argues that Ukraine's defiance of Russia, and the West's demonstration of unity and strength, has presented a profound challenge to Putin's Great Power ambition, and further polarized the world along a new axis. A riveting, enlightening account, this is present-minded history at its best.
About the Author
Serhii Plokhy is the author of Chernobyl- History of a Tragedy, which won the Baillie Gifford Prize and the Pushkin House Book Prize, and the New York Times bestseller The Gates of Europe. His many acclaimed books, including Nuclear Folly, Atoms and Ashes and The Last Empire, have been translated into over a dozen languages. He is Professor of History at Harvard University where he also serves as Director of the Harvard Ukrainian Research Institute.
Industry Reviews
How did we get here? Serhii Plokhy, a professor of Ukrainian history at Harvard University, looks for an answer to Putin's irrational war in this important and magisterial account. . . He is excellent on the dangers of perverse history * The Times and Sunday Times Best Books for Summer *
The foremost historian of Ukraine turns his attention to contemporary events. He argues that Russia's invasion is an act of old-fashioned imperialism. Plokhy uses his historical perspective to provide an original erudite and very readable account of the roots of the war and its course so far -- Gideon Rachman * Financial Times Best Summer Books *
Vladimir Putin's full invasion of Ukraine has made 2021 look like "vegetarian times", to borrow Anna Akhmatova's phrase. I'll be spending three weeks among the scrabbly pitch pines of Cape Cod, and of the stream of new books about the war itself, I plan to bring ... Serhii Plokhy's The Russo-Ukrainian War (Allen Lane), for its historical perspective on Ukraine and the Russian imperial project -- Rebecca Reich * TLS Summer Books *
The great chronicler of Ukraine breaks new ground in his rigorous and elegant analysis of Europe's biggest conflict since 1945. Wonderfully readable and deeply personal -- Luke Harding * Observer *
This magisterial book by a leading historian explains how long-held Russian imperial delusions lay behind the attack on Ukraine. It brilliantly outlines the dangers of perverse history -- David Patrikarakos * The Times *
Erudite, objective and immensely readable. A compelling rejoinder to those who, reductively, still blame Putin's war of aggression on western provocations, and an expression of faith in Ukrainian resilience -- Ben Hall * Financial Times *
